Casting Games

Target Casting

Note: Cast without targets first, to focus on proper mechanics and form. Add targets only after students have mastered casting technique. Have casters (o) line up with observers (x) on their non-casting side (left for right-handed casters and right for left-handed individuals). Observers should note form and provide feedback for improvement. 

Skills Test: Each student should be able to cast a spincasting rig using the correct procedures as demonstrated. Optional: Students also may be tested for accuracy using rods and reels or pop can rigs with casting games. Have students use the three casting techniques to show proficiency. 

Set up  targets 30 feet from the “casting line.” Use Fish Iowa! targets, archery targets laid down, hula hoops, etc. Allow at least five feet between lanes. Points are awarded for hitting the target, with the greatest point value assigned to the “bull’s eye.”  A casting round consists of ten (10) casts and a match consists of three (3) rounds. Students can compete as teams, pairs, or individuals. As students become proficient at 25 feet, increase the casting distance to 50, 75, and 100 feet.

F-I-S-H

F-I-S-H is played like H-O-R-S-E in basketball. Two to four students can play using one target. The first player casts from a certain location using a particular cast (overhand, sidearm, etc.). If the caster hits the target, the next player must replicate the cast or receive a letter in the word “fish.” Each of the players repeats the cast until someone misses and receives a letter. The player after the missed cast gets to decide the location and style of the next cast which is again repeated by the others until someone misses. If nobody misses the cast, the player who started gets to select a new cast. The last person to spell “fish” wins.

Plug Golf

This game is very similar to golf, but spincasting rigs and casting plugs are used in place of golf clubs and balls. A plug golf course is complete with tee markers, greens, and hazards. (If you teach a golf unit, you could modify that course.) Participants “cast off” from a tee marker. Instead of reeling the plug back to themselves, they walk toward the plug as they reel. They cast again from this point and head for the “green” where the golf cup is replaced by a dishpan or similar object. Participants cast until they hit the target. Each cast counts as a point and the low score for the course wins. Courses can be either nine or eighteen “holes” and participants can compete as individuals, partners, or teams. See sample plug golf course. [Printable PDF]

Pop Bottle Rigs

Supplies 

Assembly Instructions

Tie the fishing line around the middle of the pop bottle. Wrap a strip of tape around the bottle over the line to secure it. Continue to wrap line around the bottle (approximately 75 wraps). Clip the line. Attach a casting plug to the clipped end using an improved clinch or a palomar knot. Place a two-inch strip of tape across the line to secure it when not in use. You also can place a bobber, split shot, and hook on the end of the line to use it for fishing.

Using the Pop Bottle Rig

You can use pop bottle rigs to play any of the casting games. To cast the plug, hold the bottle in one hand with the top of the bottle toward the target. Leave one to two feet of line free next to the plug. Place your thumb over the line wrapped around the bottle with your other fingers wrapped around it (above the fishing line).  As you swing your hand forward, lift your thumb to release the string and cast the plug.